Destinies
by MelkiSihou
Summary: With one simple act, Edward altered the destinies of everyone around him. What was supposed to be, is no more. What new destinies await our twilight friends? War will rage on. Alliances will be made and bonds will be broken. What lines will be crossed and whose loyalty and love will be put to the test? How will it all end? No one will be untouched by destinies cruel hand.
1. Recap

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Twilight or any of the characters that can be found within the pages of Twilight or any of the subsequent books in the series. Stephenie Meyer dreamed up these wonderful characters and has so graciously lent them to us, the readers, to daydream about and enjoy.

Author's Note: I wanted to send a special thanks to my wonderful friend and Beta, AndrewsAmy. She is beyond brilliant and has helped make this story what it is. Thank you!

Author's Note Part II: Thank you everyone who has commented on Origins and really pushed me into getting Destinies done. I am sorry for the long wait, but the wait is over. I have written several chapters and continue to write as we speak. Hopefully, I will be able to update once a week.

**~d~e~s~t~i~n~i~e~s~**

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_**RECAP**_

_(This is just a quick recap from Bella's point of view of what happened in __**the prequel to this story, **__Origins. Feel free to read Origins to get more details__**, though it isn't necessary to read that in order to enjoy this story**__.)_

For the past month, I have felt utterly lost. I once knew who I was: Isabella "Bella" Marie Swan, age 17. Born September 13, 1987 to Renee and Charlie Swan. It was all a lie, though.

My birth name was McKenna Fiaira. I don't know when my real birthday is, but I was born to Elizabeth McHenry and Finton Fiaira. I murdered my mother in birth and was abandoned by my father as a baby.

I grew up believing the lie that I was just a plain human who didn't fit in, until I met _them_, the Cullens. My whole life changed the day I first saw them in the Forks High School cafeteria.

What happened after that was a blur of impossibilities. I met Fin, my biological father, and Niamh, my aunt. Then, I was whisked away to another world called Faery, where magical beings called Elementals lived. Elementals were like Fairies, but not anything like the Disney portrayal. There are four types: Drakes - fire elementals, Sylphs - air elementals, Nymphs - water elementals, and Dryads - earth elementals. My father is a Drake and my mother was a Sylph, which left me completely**, **physically inhuman.

While in Faery, I met others: David – a Royal Dryad who has become a friend and confidant – and Felicia – David's little sister who died saving my life. In Felicia's death, a war began between the Dryads and Drakes. Hatred and death haunted the world that I had once thought too beautiful to exist.

I was in Faery for two days, but gone from Earth for eight months.

Before leaving Faery, David brought me to an ancient seer, a Nymph that went by Lady Arianna. She showed me images – nightmares – of my past and what was to come. They were images that stuck with me across the void of realms, back to Earth.

When I returned home, my life as Bella officially ended. Charlie was gone – died of a heart attack – taking with him what little humanity I tried to cling to in denial. I couldn't function. Sometimes, it was just hard to breathe. I was tormented by memories of Faery and of visions yet to happen. I was haunted by the guilt of my last words to Charlie.

Through my torment, Edward provided the only solace I could find. While in his arms, the raging flames within my body calmed, but never truly dissipated. On the outside, I was functional. On the inside, I no longer knew who I was.

Slowly, I accepted Charlie's death, but then came face to face with the stark reality that someone else I cared about was dying. Jacob, whom I found out was a werewolf, had been bitten several months ago by a vampire that went by the name of McAlister. Despite Carlisle's attempts to help, Jacob was slowly dying.

I can't lose Jacob. I couldn't lose anyone else in my life whether they are human, mythical creature or a figment of my imagination.

"I will find a way." Determination and sadness both quarreled with one another to take dominance of Edward's eyes. Grief radiated through me at seeing the pain that seemed to have become a permanent fixture on his pristine face. I wasn't sure what to believe anymore. Edward had lied to me by omission that Jacob was dying. I knew he didn't do it to hurt me, but it did. Regardless of how messed up I was – and I knew I was pretty messed up right now – he should have told me. I hated being in the dark. It made me wonder if there was anything else that he wasn't telling me.

Guilt pulsated painfully through my heart at my mistrust. Edward wouldn't do anything to hurt me. There was no reason for me to distrust him. He loves me. I can trust him and take him at his word. He meant what he said – he would find a way to save Jacob.

In that simple decision, I came to the conclusion that I had forgiven Edward. It no longer mattered that he lied or withheld information. He was being honest and open with me now.

"Okay."

**~d~e~s~t~i~n~i~e~s~**

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_**Next Update: April 11**__**th**_


	2. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Sorry for the late update. I meant to get this uploaded earlier, but family night ran a little later than I had planned. I hope you all enjoy!**

**Chapter 1**

**Bella's Point of View**

"Okay." It had been the last word I uttered in the last few minutes. It was all I could manage. If I said anything else, I was afraid the fear and grief I felt would overcome me. I had spent long enough in a shadowy place of despair and although every fiber of my being pulled me back to that shadowy place, I fought it.

It was time to push my fear and pain down below the surface and face what was coming. I could start by trying to do something for Jake.

Jacob's head moved slightly, drawing my eyes back to him as he practically spilled over Charlie's recliner. "What can we do for him in the mean time?" Was there anything I _could_ do for him? Carlisle was one of the greatest doctors, yet he couldn't do anything. What could I possibly do?

Neither Carlisle nor Edward spoke for a moment, leaving silence thick in the air. I turned my attention back to them and was surprised to find that at some point, Carlisle had crossed the room to stand near Edward. They were having some unspoken conversation or a very quiet one because Edward shook his head at Carlisle with pain situated on his face. Carlisle's lips tipped downward. What was I missing? I knitted my brows. "What's wrong?"

Both Carlisle and Edward turned their attention to me with what I could only guess as confusion. Then, like a mask being put on both of their faces, the confusion was gone. Carlisle smiled slightly as Edward ran a hand through his hair and turned away. An uneasy feeling bubbled up in my gut. What weren't they telling me?

I took a deep breath. Why was I freaking out? Just because they were having a conversation that I wasn't involved in did not mean they were keeping something from me. Not everything was about me and my freakish life.

"I apologize," Carlisle glanced over to Edward for a moment before turning back to me. Carlisle focus was on Edward and whatever they had been discussing. I was definitely out of the loop on something. _Did_ it have to do with me? Jacob? "He should rest and conserve his strength."

"Bella..." Jacob croaked hoarsely making me jump in surprise. It took a moment for my mind to absorb my name and then its source. When my mind finally caught up, my heart stuttered as I practically tripped over myself in an attempt to get to Jake quickly.

"Jake!" My voice spiked in anticipation. I quickly grabbed his hand and watched for any sign that he was waking up. His body began to tremble, which was something. It was something besides the eerie stillness that had come over him hours ago.

His lips spread into a weak smile as his eyes opened into weak slits. "I... I was worried that it was only a dream." His eyes closed again as his chest started to rise and fall with a little more strength than before.

Tears sprang to my eyes and my throat tightened with joy. I tried to ask what he meant, but the words stuck in my throat. I had to cough to clear it enough to finally dislodge my words. "What was a dream?" I gently swept some loose hair away from his face wondering how it was possible for Jacob to have changed so much in eight months. I mean, there were such things as growth spurts, but this was more than that. Was this part of being a werewolf...? Shape-shifter? He didn't look like a fifteen year old – was he still fifteen? Had he become sixteen while I was gone? He didn't look sixteen either. Maybe in his early twenties? He'd filled out in height and weight it seemed. However, I could still see my Jake.

A heat crept up in my face as that thought struck me queer. It should have felt odd claiming Jacob as mine, but it came too naturally. My Jake? Since when was Jake my Jake? He wasn't. Edward was my Edward. Guilt cascaded through my heart as I turned my head to look to Edward. I didn't want him to think the wrong thing. My heart sagged a little when I found that Edward had left the room, as did Carlisle.

Jacob chuckled slightly, pulling my attention back to him. I noticed that his body had calmed, the trembling having subsided. It wasn't like before where it looked like Death had claimed him. His breathing was still stronger. As if to demonstrate this, he took several deep breathes with the same smile lingering on his lips while his eyes remained closed. "You."

I couldn't help the smile that spread over my face. He looked better. Well, better was a relative word, but it was change that was better than death. "Me?" The tears fell and landed on our joined hands. It surprised me when it ran down my hand because I hadn't even realized that I had lifted our clasped hands to my face. I slowly lowered them back down as I watched Jake with anticipation.

Jacob grunted and then opened his eyes wearily. His brows creased as the smile left his face. Slowly and with effort, he lifted his free hand and traced a finger over my forehead between my brows. My heart skipped a beat. "I'm sorry." His fingers ghosted my brow as his palm came to settle on my cheek. My heart began to race. Why was it doing that? Why wasn't I pulling away? When had Jake grown so bold?

Jake's face lit up with another smile, this one with just a little more strength behind it. "My heart is racing so fast right now." His eyes didn't leave mine. He pulled my hand that still held his and laid it upon his chest. As my palm laid flat over his racing heart, he closed his eyes with a sigh. I studied his face that seemed so much more peaceful than it had when he first arrived. That was a good sign, right?

I turned my focus to my hand sitting on his chest. His bare chest. My face flushed again as a thought wafted through my head to quickly pull my hand away. I glanced at his face, which seemed so much more tranquil now. If I pulled away now, would it hurt Jake? Did I want to pull my hand away? My heart sped up as I couldn't pull a clear answer from the recesses of my mind.

I could feel his heart racing, which seemed to have sped up with mine. It was like our hearts were in sync.

What was I thinking? I pulled my hand away slowly and lifted from Jacob's side, making Jake open his eyes again. Our hearts were synced? I didn't know if I did or didn't want to touch him. What was wrong with me? This was wrong. Very wrong.

"Sorry." Jake said as he touched his chest where my hand had been only moments ago. "I..." A small smile played at the corners of his lips. "Being here with you makes me feel better." He chuckled. "You give me a reason to fight... whatever this is..."

"Jake..." His words then struck a cord in me. He was feeling better. Since he had been here, I had been better, too, hadn't I?

No. I wasn't going to think like that. It was stupid. It wasn't me, was it? Maybe? I don't know! Who was I?

His lips lifted into a weary smile as his eyes began to flutter close. "Jake!" I knelt back down to him and grabbed his hand again. "Are you okay?" Carlisle. I needed Carlisle.

Jacob opened one eye lazily and then let it slip shut. He nodded his head ever so slightly. "I..." He yawned and opened his eyes and gazed into my eyes. "I am just tired and can finally sleep." He swallowed as his lips slowly relaxed from the smile and his eyes closed. "Thank..." He took several breaths... "you..." His words came out as a whisper and then just a slight snore filled the room. He was sleeping.

"That is a good sign." I jumped nearly out of my skin at the sound of Carlisle's voice. He stepped up behind me and looked over my shoulder.

I turned my head to look up at Carlisle. "What do you mean?"

Carlisle seemed to concentrate on something before he turned his eyes on me and smiled. "Jake hadn't really been able to sleep the last few months. He usually just fell unconscious." Carlisle nodded his head. "His heartbeat sounds stronger."

"So, that's good, right?" My hand tightened around Jake's relaxed one.

"That is actually great." His smile faded as he took in my face. "I don't know what it means Bella, but it is a good thing." He offered his hand too me to help me up off the floor. I looked back down at Jacob and kissed his hand before releasing it. Then I took Carlisle's offered hand and felt my heart stop for a moment before it started to race again. Had I just kissed Jacob's hand?

I looked at Carlisle's face as if expecting it to confirm that I had just done that. It did. It looked surprised and so I quickly turned my head down. "So... sorry."

"Bella?" His voice sounded concerned. I knew he was going to ask me, but I didn't have an answer. I didn't know why I had done it. I never did understand my connection with Jacob, even from that first day we met eight years ago.

So before he could ask me a question that would make me dwell on it anymore, I changed the subject. "Where did Edward go?"

Carlisle's features knitted for a moment before they smoothed out. He knew I was avoiding the questions. "He is outside, we have-" He smiled. "-visitors who would like to see you."

Visitors? Carlisle released my hand and led the way to the front door. He took another glance at Jacob behind me and nodded his head reassuringly. He opened the door just as something small and black came bounding at me and crashed into me.

The breath whooshed out of me for a second as I turned my head back to look at Jake. He hadn't woken up, so I turned my attention to the mop of black hair that had its arms around me. My mind was racing as to who this was. Did I know anyone with black hair? "Umm."

The hair moved and then released me. "Sorry Bella, I am just so glad you are okay!" The girl spoke. Her voice sounded like... but no... it couldn't be. I stepped back away from the girl and looked at her. I felt my jaw drop and my mind went blank with the exception that this girl... this very warm and soft girl was Alice. What exactly happened while I was gone?


	3. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: Sorry for the delay on updating this chapter. When I tried to update, I kept getting an error. Without anymore delay, there is Chapter II, enjoy!**

**Author's Note Part II: Thank you to everyone who has read and a huge thank you to those who have reviewed. You guys and gals are awesome. Also, a big wopping thank you to Andrew'sAmy for being the more awesome Beta ever!**

**~d~e~s~t~i~n~i~e~s~**

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**CHAPTER II**

**Bella's Point of View**

"Wha..." I shook my head not knowing what to say. It wasn't possible, was it? Alice... Alive.

I grimaced thinking of it that way. I never thought of Edward and the others as dead... Just different. They had changed, but they were still alive. "Alice?"

Alice smiled and lifted her shoulders in a shrug. "Weird, right?"

I nodded and opened my mouth to say something, but the words left my mind when he walked into the path of the door. My heart thudded painfully in my chest as I first caught sight of his unruly red hair. Then my eyes fell onto his intense emerald green eyes. They looked overjoyed and then pained as I backed away. He didn't say anything, but instead cast his face down.

Alice turned and looked between Fin and me. I figured I would see Fin again, but I wasn't ready. I wasn't prepared to acknowledge who he was. I knew he was my biological father, but it was hard to grasp. I grew up knowing Charlie was my father. Now I had to relearn that this man, who looked close to my own age, was in fact the man who gave me half of my cursed blood. He was my father. The same man who abandoned me as a baby to strangers. The same man who stole me away from my life nearly a year ago. He hadn't made me go to Faery, but if he hadn't taken me, then I would have never gone. If I hadn't gone, then none of this would be happening now. Charlie would be alive. Jacob… I looked over to see him still sleeping. Jacob wouldn't be in a precarious situation between life and death. Everything would be simpler.

Fin winced and stepped forward toward me. The overwhelming desire to run away bombarded me, but I didn't run, not that I could. They were all faster than me and had way better coordination. Instead, I stumbled back and put my hands up. "No. I..." I shook my head. "I... You... No. You can't be here."

"McKen- Bella." His brows knitted in sorrow. He stayed hesitantly in the doorway. "I -"

I shook my head more vehemently and covered my ears. Part of me felt like a petulant child, but the other part just couldn't handle it. "I _don't_ want you here..." Guilt vibrated through my veins as renewed pain passed Fin's eyes. I didn't want to hurt him. I just couldn't do this. Not right now. "Please... Just not now. I..." I clenched my teeth trying to will away the tears. I just wasn't ready to face this.

I hadn't noticed Jasper make an appearance, but at some point he did. He stepped to Fin's side. "Bella. Fin is your fa-"

I dropped my hands and turned a hard glare on Jasper. "I know who he is." I swallowed back the increasing lump in my throat. I felt the heat pooling in my cheeks. Looks of surprise were on the faces of everyone around me. Edward wasn't here. I couldn't think much on that, because everyone's disappointment in me was nearly tangible. It caused a wedge of pain to lodge itself in my chest. It could not be helped though. They didn't understand. This was all over a period of months for them! It had been weeks. I couldn't process it that quickly.

"I... I'm sorry about Charlie. He was a good man." Fin tried to hide the pain and sorrow. It was plain to see, so much that I could feel it myself. I could feel the hurt I was inflicting on him. My heart throbbed with the guilt, but then his words sank into my mind.

Why was he talking about Charlie? What did he know about him? Charlie was a good man? No. He was a great man. He was there every day that he could be. He watched over me and cared. What did he know? He didn't know Charlie.

I nodded my head feeling unexpected anger building up. "He was a good man. An even better _father_." I wanted to scream out, I was so furious.

The misery in Fin's face was palpable. He took a step back and cast his face down. "I'm sorry Bel-"

I lifted my hand to stop him and shook my head, the anger not dissipating. _If it weren't for Fin, __Charlie would still be alive. _That thought seared through my mind and echoed louder than any other. It became so overwhelming that I could scarcely breathe. I clenched my teeth as tears spilled over my eye lids. It was Fin's fault Charlie was dead. It was _his_ fault that Jacob was dying. It was _his_ fault that I was so broken... It was all _his_ fault!

I wanted to scream out in furry!"Please... just... just go." I turned away from him, from all of them and kept my anger filled eyes on Jacob. I needed to get these thoughts out of my head! I needed to calm down before the fever came back. I focused my mind on the rise and fall of Jacob's chest, counting with each rise.

In. One. Out.

In. Two. Out.

In. Three. Out.

Somehow, it seemed to calm me down. With each breath exhaled, I could feel a small part of myself return. I focused my thoughts purely on Jacob. I took in the peaceful look on his face. It was no longer contorted in pain and suffering.

My thoughts became unhinged when the front door shut, leaving only silence to prevail. I turned slowly to see everyone was gone. The desire to cry and run after them came forefront to my mind, but I quickly pushed it away. I needed this. For the first time in a month, I wanted to be alone. I needed to figure out and accept what I couldn't control. I needed to learn who I was now outside of humanity. Maybe... maybe when I knew these things, then I could know who my biological father really was.

I sat in the living room just listening to the soothing sound of Jacob's breathing. It struck me funny that I found his breathing so precious, but I did. It meant that Jacob hadn't given up. He was still fighting to get better. It meant that he was alive.

My mind quickly shifted from Jake to Alice. She was breathing, too. She was alive and human, from the looks of it. Then again, knowing now that there were elementals and wolfs, who knew if Alice was actually human. She had a pulse though, so to me she was human. That in itself was a drastic difference from the last time I had seen her.

How had it happened? How did she become human?

Suddenly my heart started to pound harder in my chest. Was it possible for Edward and the others to become human? Would they want to become human? It had to be a big change going from being indestructible to being merely human. What did Alice think about it? She seemed okay with it.

Would Edward change? If he did, we could be together. It wouldn't matter if he needed to eat or not. I could cook for him. He could sleep with me and we could dream together. He wouldn't think he was a danger to me.

My face warmed as other thoughts wafted into my mind regarding other things that we could do without driving him away. We could put everything behind us and just be together, happy, right?

I flinched as images that Lady Arianna had shown me in Faery flashed through my mind. A woman burning from the inside out because of the child she bore. Maybe Edward had it all wrong. Maybe _I_ was the more dangerous one. I couldn't control my "powers." I had already killed people without even meaning to. Who was to say that I wouldn't accidentally kill Edward?

My heart felt like it was ripping in two at that thought.

I turned my eyes on Jacob as he started to mumble something in his sleep, but it was unintelligible. The pain in my heart only thickened as I realized that I was probably a danger to Jacob too, to all of them really.

That was a lot to take in. A lot to accept.

I turned my head to the door as it opened allowing a burst of cold air to come in. The cold slithered down my spine in an uncomfortable way. The past month had been that way, an uncomfortable cold. I had never liked the cold, but after being in Faery, it seemed worse.

A sudden ache for that warmth pulsated through me, taking me by surprise. I didn't miss that place, not at all, so I wasn't sure where that longing had come from.

Alice shut the door lightly behind her and then turned toward me. Surprise flitted across her face. "I guess I am not quite as inconspicuous as I used to be." She chuckled.

I smiled. "I don't believe I have ever considered any of you inconspicuous." I shook my head and laid it against my arm. I smiled to myself. "Even when I couldn't see you, I could always feel you."

Alice knitted her brows, "I guess you are right about not being inconspicuous, but you felt us?" She stood awkwardly against the front door, like she wasn't sure what to do.

Had I never told them that I could feel them? Probably not, at the time it seemed crazy. I laughed humorlessly at myself. What I wouldn't give for the crazy that entailed, rather than the crazy I was forced to live now.

I noticed Alice hadn't moved from the door, as if she were hesitant, maybe afraid. Was she scared of me? Had I done something wrong? Did Fin tell her what I had done when I was born? My cheeks flushed as a bitterness skidded along my spine and seemed to fill me. "I don't bite," I said icily as I turned my head to look at Jacob again. Why were my emotions all over the place now? Alice hadn't done anything, so why was I feeling angry again? Again, I counted Jacob's breaths.

I heard rustling and then felt tiny arms wrap around me, halting my counting. "Bella, I am so sorry about Charlie. I didn't know until... Well... just a little while ago." She squeezed me tightly and I wondered for a moment if she was using her full strength. The anger seeped out of my body and I only felt sorrow. Sorrow for my cruelty toward Fin. Sorrow for being angry when there was no reason to be. Sorrow for Charlie.

I swallowed back the tears that threatened to flood my eyes. It was a wonder that I hadn't run out of tears today. I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. I knew that as soon as I opened my mouth, a flood gate would open.

"What can I do to make it better?"

I laughed humorlessly. There was no making this better, not really. "Turn back the hands of time and stop all of this from happening." I was right, because the flood gates opened and tears hammered down my cheeks.

Alice didn't say anything, but squeezed her arms around me tighter. We were both silent for several moments until a sniffle echoed in my ear. It was then that I realized that Alice, too, was crying. She quickly pulled away and wiped her hand across her face. "Sorry." She looked down at her wet fingers and smiled.

Vampires didn't cry. I wondered how different this was for Alice, to release her sorrow and pain in the form of tears. "So... how did this happen?" I gestured to her new and less durable body and moved over to give her room to sit on the couch, too. Again, the possibility of Edward being human echoed in my mind.

Alice shrugged and sat down next to me. She then wrapped her arms around herself and rubbed her arms absently. The coolness in the air also nipped at my cheeks that felt far too warm. "I am not really sure of the exact science... or magic-" She shrugged again. "-of it." She released her arms and looked down at her gloved hands. "Something about Drake magic and Nymph magic... Oh!" Alice looked at me suddenly with a smile on her face. "Apparently I am or have Nymph blood in me."

As Alice continued to speak, my mind drifted from her actual words. She had Nymph in her. Then a sudden crashing feeling hit the bottom of my stomach and seemed to plume through me. Alice said Nymph, which meant she knew about the Elementals. Then Jasper's words that I cut off resurfaced suddenly. They knew who Fin was, which meant they knew I wasn't human. Had Edward known? It had never come up between us in these past few weeks. I had been too much in a catatonic state. I had selfishly held onto Edward, but refused to talk about anything that had to do with Faery and who or what I was. Had he found out today and that was why he left? I hadn't seen him in the last few hours.

Then a memory from weeks ago flitted through my mind. Emmett had stated just as much that I wasn't completely human. So he had known, which meant that Edward had to know. So then where was he? Why had he left and not said anything? "Alice, where did Edward go?"

Alice stopped abruptly in the middle of what she was saying. I had a moment's pang of guilt that I hadn't been listening at all. She knitted her brows and frowned. "Uhh." Her cheeks blushed and she looked down at the floor. She looked like she was trying to hide something.

A sudden sense of panic rose up in the back of my throat, threatening to empty the contents of my stomach. "Alice?"

Alice sighed and looked back up to me. "I don't know." Her cheeks remained red and she quickly turned her head away from me.

She was definitely trying to hide something. Was he angry with me? I couldn't blame him if he was. I had been trying to comfort Jacob with little regard to Edward's presence. What kind of girlfriend did that make me? A bad one.

Then a terrifying thought struck me. What if he was out there trying to find this McAlister guy? He had promised to make Jacob okay, did that entail finding this guy? Would Edward go after him alone?

My heart thudded when I realized that neither Jasper nor Carlisle were here either. I didn't feel any of them. Did they all go after this guy that had proven to be a threat more wicked than James and Victoria? "Alice where are Jasper and Carlisle?"

Alice quickly turned her gaze to me. Worry tiptoed across her face and then recognition dawned in her eyes. "Oh. Jasper is still out there. He didn't want to leave me here with a wolf –" Alice gestured to Jacob's sleeping form. "- regardless of whether he was on deaths door or -" Alice quickly covered her mouth. Her eyes opened wide in horror. She then muffled through her fingers, "I didn't mean that. I mean..." She scrunched her brows up and shook her head. She then lowered her hands and looked at me pleadingly. "I didn't mean that to be calloused and cold." She was clearly stricken with herself.

I almost had an urge to laugh, but I didn't. I smiled though and shook my head. "Alice, it's okay." I looked to Jacob and had a bit of hope for him yet. His color looked better and he was still resting, which Carlisle made out to be a good thing. "If Jasper is still here, why isn't he with us?"

Alice grimaced. "A few reasons." She looked over to Jacob. "Apparently he stinks." Alice took an experimental sniff of the air and shrugged. "Also, Carlisle said that our... their... presence aggravates his state of health." Alice looked back at me. "Lastly, he doesn't want to hurt us." Alice rolled her eyes with indignation at that. "As if he would ever hurt me."

"What about Carlisle?"

Alice's indignation fell away and she looked down at her gloved hands again. "He's with..." She hesitated before looking back up at me. "He's with Edward."

Panic again squeezed my heart. Why was she hiding the truth of what Edward was doing from me? An ominous chill tiptoed across my spine, tightening my back with ill tension. He had to be doing something that would make me worry about him, something dangerous. Why else hide it from me?

Alice sighed and put her arm around my shoulders. "Bella, relax." The tension didn't leave my shoulders, it only coiled tighter. "They are okay, I promise." She smiled unconvincingly. "Fin is with them, if it makes you feel any better."

That tight wire of tension popped at hearing Fin's name, causing a spasm in my muscles and my heart to stutter. I rubbed absently at my chest and wondered without conscious thought if my heart would give out anytime soon from all this stress. Then my mind went completely blank as Charlie's face lit up in my mind. I stifled the tears that wanted to come gushing out at his memory.

With great difficulty, I forced my mind to get back on task. Edward, Carlisle and Fin were gone and doing something they didn't want me to know about. Something not dangerous? I wasn't sure how much of that I believed. Why was Fin with Edward and Carlisle? Hadn't he expressed his distaste and general disliking of all vampires, or Kre Krudas as he called them?

I felt mentally exhausted. It was a lot to wrap my mind around the fact that I had been missing for eight months. Apparently a lot had happened and changed in that time. It was surreal for me because I had only been away from everyone for five days, max. There was the three days I had been unconscious after Fin whisked me away. Then there was the two days I spent in Faery. Could I liken it to a severe case of jet lag?

Not only was the concept of time divergence exhausting, but also the sheer amount of information I gained through Faery. I felt like I was in overload and couldn't truly process it all. As the time passed from when I returned, most things blurred from consciousness and remained mostly as fuzzy nightmares. Memories that I knew were horrid, but that I couldn't – or just didn't want to concentrate enough on to remember. So they teetered on the fringe of my mind, waiting for an unsuspecting moment to creep in and throw my world upside down. There were things that I knew were important and that I needed to remember, but it eluded my mind.

I looked at Alice and again wondered just how much she and the others knew. Had they had any preview to the same nightmares that I was frequented by night after night, only to wake up with hazy images? "What do you know?" I hadn't meant to blurt that out, it just came out of its own fruition.

Alice cocked her head to the side and lifted her lips up into a half smile. "What do you mean?"

I chewed on my bottom lip and furrowed my brows. "Fin told you he was my father?" I whispered feeling a large weight situate itself squarely in my chest.

Alice nodded her head. "He did." Her smile fell and brows knitted as she fell into contemplation.

I sighed. "I..." I looked down at my hands that I just realized I was wringing together. "I don't..." I sighed again not knowing how to open up. Should I even open up? I hadn't been able to with Edward; something always seemed to stop me. Much like it was doing now. It was hard to wrap my head around my own mind.

Alice seemed to sense this because she laid her head on my shoulder. "Bella, I know it must be a shock to you, but he's really a good guy."

He's really a good guy? Fin? I knew deep down that he was a good guy, but I had so much anger towards him. I opened my mouth to protest, but she quickly lifted her head and looked at me sternly. "He is." She pinned me with one of those looks that left me with no rebuttal. Not verbally at least. The words _he abandoned me_ kept roaming in my mind. He left me to feel all alone in this world. He left me to feel like an outcast. _He took me away... _"He saved my life Bella." Alice continued as she looked to the front door. "He kept Jasper and Edward both sane from what I hear." She sighed and looked at me again. "He suffered a lot..." Alice looked down in guilt and then back up. "He's a far better man than you give him credit for."

Deep down, I knew I couldn't blame Fin for my life, not all of it, at least. I was responsible for my actions. I didn't understand or know why he abandoned me as a baby. But he had been there when I was in trouble, hadn't he? Maybe I was just angry about everything that I couldn't control, which increasingly seemed like everything. Fin couldn't control it either. If it had been up to him, I wouldn't know anything about Faery or that I wasn't human.

A little flair of anger trickled up. Too many people tried to dictate my life. They thought they knew what was better for me than I did, but it was my life. I had a right to know the things that pertained to me and I had the right to make my own decisions... they were my choices to make.

Like a teeter tooter, guilt replaced the anger again as I thought about how I treated Fin a few hours ago. Regardless of our past, he had done a lot for the people I love. I had no right to treat him the way I had. Upon reflection, I knew why I had jabbed Fin with the word father. He abandoned me, therefore he didn't know what a true father was. That wasn't a reason for me to try to hurt him, I knew this wasn't his fault. I had chosen to go to Faery. _But he did abandon me... _That didn't matter, because honestly, I didn't know the reasoning behind it. For whatever reason he left me, it held no bearing on what was going on now. _Except that Charlie would be alive right now if he hadn't abandoned me._

I tried to shake that thought from my mind because, rationally, I _knew _Fin's leaving didn't have anything to do with Charlie's heart attack. Try as I might to be rational about it, the thought still plagued me, bringing about another episode of anger. "Alice, I know you're right. Rationally I do, but... I don't know. It is just too hard right now." I shook my head. "I found out a month ago that the man I grew up believing was my dad, wasn't. I found out that I wasn't even human and that the only family I had, left me on someone's doorstep." I bit my bottom lip and looked to the door. "I am thankful that he saved all of you, I am." I swallowed and looked at Alice and felt my heart wanting to rend in half with the truth. "But... I... I'm not ready... okay?" I looked to her, pleading."

"Bella..." Alice's eyes lowered in sympathy.

I shook my head. "I'm not ready!" I shouted feeling the anger trying to consume me.

"Okay..." Alice sighed. "I just-"

"I don't even know who I am anymore." The tears came to my eyes as a sob of anger, frustration and sorrow shook my body. "I don't know who my mom was... I don't know when I was born or..." I shook my head as the coolness of my tears stung my burning cheeks. "I just don't know anything anymore."

Alice grabbed me up into her arms and tried to hush my tears. "You're Bella silly." She tightened her arms around me. "You're the girl that Edward loves." She lifted up from me and smiled up at me. "My sister."

I smiled through my tears, but then frowned again. "Thanks Alice. I don't know. I just feel like my past has been wiped away. Like I am a nobody."

"Well that is just crazy. You've already lived your past and nothing can take that away. Besides, your past doesn't truly dictate who you are unless you let it. Look at me. I don't remember anything from my life before a vampire, but I am still the me you see before you. Who I was then, it doesn't matter." She nudged me. "Also, you are somebody. No one can be a nobody."

"You don't remember your human life?" I asked shocked. "I'm so sorry."

Alice shrugged. "I'm not."

"But don't you wonder?"

Alice thought about it. "Not really. I love my life now. I have a family and the love of a wonderful man. That life before this one was someone else's, not mine."

I let her words process for a moment, they made sense, but they didn't quite relate to me. "It's different. If I didn't remember, it would be like starting with a clean slate. I remember and it was all a lie. I mean... none of it was real." My shoulders lifted in a defeated shrug. "It hurts."

Alice frowned and turned to look at Jacob. She turned back to me with anger in her eyes then she gestured toward Jacob. "Is he a lie?"

I knitted my brows not quiet understanding where Alice was going with this.

"Is the fact that he came all the way over here just to see you even though it was damaging to him a lie?" She asked more sternly, the fire in her eyes intensifying.

My growing companion of guilt reared its ugly head at that comment. Jacob had risked his life coming over here. Not only had he exerted himself more than he should have, McAlister could have taken him away.

Horror filled me at that thought. What if McAlister had somehow gotten Jacob while he was on his way here? I would have never seen him. Would I have even thought about him if he hadn't come?

My heart pinched with pain because I don't know if I would have. It seems Jacob was one of those things that I had let slip into the realm of lost memories. I hadn't remembered the death threat against him until he showed up.

Again, my heart throbbed painfully thinking of the possibility that I would have never seen Jacob again.

Alice studied me for a moment and then her frown deepened. "What about Charlie? Is the fact that he died missing you a lie?" As soon as she said it, she looked stricken with her own words. It was a low blow to bring up Charlie. The amount of guilt I had for Charlie could fill an arena. That guilt was very real.

"What about Edward and the rest of us? Was the fact that we spent months searching for you and missing you a lie? Is the fact that we love you a lie?" She released an exasperated breath and shook her head, the flame of anger extinguishing from her eyes. "None of that was a lie. Yes, some of the details were blurred, but everything you lived, it was real. It was the truth."

I loved Alice in that moment more than I thought possible. She was like what I thought an older sister would be like, a confidante, a shoulder to cry on, someone who put you in your place, even if it hurt your feelings. She was family. "Maybe." I swallowed rehashing her words in my mind again. "I... I guess you're right." I smiled halfheartedly and then wondered for a moment if she would be classified as the older sister. How old was she in her human years when she was turned? Did that count as her age now?

Alice smiled and patted my shoulder. "Exactly." She released me and looked back to the front door, her brows pinching together slightly. "I can understand that you aren't ready to accept Fin as your dad. You shouldn't push him away though." She looked at me with a pointed look.

I cast my guilt filled eyes down to look at the floor, unable to face the accusation in Alice's eyes. "What about Edward. Does he know?" I looked up at her. "I mean, about me?"

Alice pierced me with one of those _what do you think_ looks.

I nodded. "I figured." I winced with sudden fear of rejection. "Wha... what does he think about it?"

Alice lifted a brow and stood up from the couch. She crossed the floor and looked out the front window. "It's starting to snow." She shivered as she stated absently before turning back to me, leaning against the window frame.

"Is he upset about it?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "Why would he be upset about it? What is wrong with being a fairy?" Her tone held a teasing mirth to it and her eyes lit up in amusement.

I frowned and did the best impression of Niamh as I could. "Elemental. Don't ever use fairy around any elemental. It's a derogatory word, no one likes it." I smiled slightly remembering Niamh. That smile quickly vanished as her last words came rushing back to me.

_"Tell Fintan to run and hide... Bella, I am so sorry. I am sorry for taking you here and for hating you before this... The Council was wrong about you... I was wrong about you. Please tell Fintan I didn't mean to-" _

The fear that I had felt in those moments came flooding back. She was scared for Fin's life. Fin was in danger. Was he still? "Fin… He's supposed to run and hide." I looked to Alice as the memory that had propelled me through the Decrepit Forest came churning back to the surface of my mind. Why hadn't I thought of it since Felicia's death? I was dealing with stuff, but to forget that? The pain and anguish that Niamh was under... How does someone forget that?

"What are you talking about?" Alice stepped away from the window. Her body tensed as she studied me.

What was I talking about?

I put my hands to my head as my heart started to race. Images of that day in the forest came roaring back to my mind, causing my blood to thrum too fast through my body. The hundreds to thousands of flames crossing overhead. The screams as people burned and others were stripped of their flesh. My stomach lurched as tears came unbidden yet once again. "They are coming!" I nearly screamed hysterically.

Alice's eyes grew larger as she ran to cross the room just as I started to tumble forward. Everything was getting increasingly hot and began to spin. Arms that were slightly warmer than myself caught and wrapped around me. "Bella?" His voice was husky and vibrated in his chest.

Everything felt like it was pressing in on me. I couldn't breathe.

"Bella?" Alice's voice was shrill with worry. "What are you talking about? Calm down!"

"What's wrong with her?" The husky voice asked; worry laced in his words.

I shook my head and felt myself being pressed deeper into Jake's chest. The warmth was soothing and I wondered absently if I had woken him up. He shifted under my cheek and pulled me away from him. "Bella? Are… are you okay?"

"Breathe, Bella..." Alice coaxed.

Breathe. Calm down. I tried to do as they said, but the burning wouldn't stop. _There's so many of them. _Felicia's words suddenly came back to me with such clarity that it was almost as if I was back there again. Then it was all in fast forward. Felicia's death, the war, David, Lady Arianna. My mind stopped suddenly on Lady Arianna.

_I held my hand protectively to my chest as Lady Arianna lifted the blade of the dagger she had just used on my palm to her lips. I hadn't expected her to cut me. The dagger just seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. It burned with every thrum of my pulse. I wasn't sure if it was being underground, being in another dimension or just the smell of my own blood that made me feel uneasy and lightheaded._

_ Her tongue darted out as the blood dripped from the point of the blade. Her eyes glazed over as she dropped the dagger to the floor, causing an echo to reverberate through the hollow earth. Slowly her eyes closed, but I could still see her eyes moving rapidly behind her lids._

_ I opened my mouth to ask what was going on when David grabbed my free hand. I looked to him and he just shook his head. A sense of peace washed over me and I nodded my head. I waited._

_ Lady Arianna smiled serenely, but then the smile faded as her brows came together. A frown then adorned her face. She slowly opened her eyes. "This is quite the conundrum." She lifted a brow and then turned her head to a puddle of water. "What is it exactly you want to know?"_

_ What exactly did I want to know? I wasn't sure. I was just confused. No, I was more than just confused. I was horrified and scared. "I... I..."_

_ Lady Arianna smiled a knowing smile. She offered her hand and I hesitated. Last time I had given her my hand, she had brought a knife to it. It still pulsated with burning pain. "I will show you what I see."_

_ I looked to David questioningly. He was watching me with his sorrowful eyes. I wondered for a moment how his eyes normally looked. The only time I hadn't seen the sorrow staring back at me was when he spoke with his father. At that time, he held only anger._

_ He nodded his head and took a step back, releasing my hand. I turned my attention back to Lady Arianna. She didn't look deceptive. Then again, if someone looked deceptive, would they truly be deceptive? I slowly extended my still bleeding hand over to her. She took it into hers and then knelt down to pick up the dagger again. My heart pricked with panic seeing the knife in her hand again._

_ She led me to the puddle of water that sat in the middle of the cavernous room we stood in. "This will be very uncomfortable, but trust me. I won't let anything happen to you." She spoke as she turned to face me. There was a twinkle in her eyes that told me she wouldn't let anything happen to me._

_ I nodded my head, still hesitant. She smiled and then released my hand. She brought the dagger up and slashed her own palm, causing a quiver of unease to shiver through my body. "I don't normally do this, but I think you need to see this." She walked over to a stone table and set the dagger down. She made her way back to me, her walking almost hypnotic in its sway. She took my wrist and guided me to the water._

_ My heart quickened when I realized where we were going. I pulled back for a moment and she looked at me. "Trust me." She whispered and then pulled me to step into the water. She faced me and took my wounded hand into her wounded hand. As our blood mixed and combined, the water lifted from the puddle that was on the ground. It surrounded us and for a moment, I couldn't breathe. Energy was being pulled from every pore of my body, leaving me feeling week. My body felt like it was being drained, only further exasperating the feeling of not being able to breathe._

_ "Breathe." Lady Arianna locked eyes with me and I felt myself being pulled into her eyes. The water circled around us. "Relax." Her words were hypnotic. Our surroundings dimmed and it was as if I was falling into her electric blue eyes. No longer did I see the water around me, nor her eyes anymore. Instead I was in an oasis of blue._

_ Despite the strain on my body, it was calming. In that blue existed past, present and future. The blue began to distort and swirl, unraveling the truths._

My head throbbed painfully as memories that had once been unleashed by Lady Arianna came screaming back for another reappearance. It was like they were trapped behind a door in my mind and now the door had burst open. Some of the memories were meaningless and others monumental, but the one thing they all had in common was that I didn't remember any of them. It was like looking at someone else's life. Each memory centered around me though. Memories of being a baby. Memories of Renee leaving Charlie. Memories that I should have retained, but couldn't recall them. Somehow they were locked away, because otherwise I should have remembered. I should have remembered living with my dad for nearly a year when I was six. I should have remembered Jacob's mom. I should have remembered... but it was just a blank sheet. Even after seeing these images, I couldn't recall them.

Could it be that they were false memories? Maybe Lady Arianna had ulterior motives? What those motives were, I wasn't sure. That seemed to be a common occurrence now-a-days. I knew absolutely nothing that was going on, mostly those things that pertained to me.

'_Fin can help!'_

The thought flashed in my mind and I quickly dismissed it. I knew Fin would know and I knew I needed to accept everything going on in my life and go to him, but part of me – the part of me that just wanted everything to go back to normal – fought against it vehemently.

'_Who is Fin?'_

My head throbbed more violently. I tried to put my hands to my head and rub the temples that felt like they were trying to be torn open from the inside out, only to find that I couldn't move. Much like before, my body was betraying me. I could feel the burning coursing through my veins, but it seemed far worse in my temples.

'_Fin is her dad... He can help.'_

It dawned on me suddenly that I wasn't hearing my own thoughts, but others around me. Had I gone unconscious? No. I wasn't unconscious, I was burning, but not like before – not like I had when Fin took me from Alice and Jasper. This burning was disconnected... disjointed? I felt it, but it wasn't all consuming.

'_Alice?'_

_ 'Jasper... we need-'_

Their words faded away as darkness suddenly began to descend upon me. I was alone with only my forgotten memories to spur on the latent flames that flowed through my veins.

**~d~e~s~t~i~n~i~e~s~**

…**::::::::!::::::::…**

**Author's Note Part III: I just wanted to share a fanfiction that I am reading that has caught my fancy. The name of the story is Bitter Memories written by Judy1998. It is a great story thus far! Check it out if you are looking to fill your time between chapters and other stories. **


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter III**

**Edward's Point of View**

_ 'Son, I know you want to make things better for Bella, but I have done everything that I can. All I have been able to do is try to make the pain more bearable for him. There may be no helping him.' _Carlisle's thoughts were downtrodden with both worry and grief for Jacob. It made me wonder what was so special about Jacob. He seemed to have unsuspectingly garnered the admiration of all those I held dear. Even Rosalie had a soft spot for the "mutt." _'I am worried that you do not fully understand the promise you just made? You may be raising her hopes unreasonably.'_

I cast my eyes downward not able to meet Carlisle's. I knew that the odds of saving Jacob were slim. That had been the reason we had decided not to tell Bella. She was mourning Charlie and not doing well. Adding the inevitable death of someone else would have made it worse, or so we had thought. I glanced up at Bella as her head turned to Jacob.

A throbbing of pain and guilt coursed through my body as Lady Arianna's words echoed in my mind again. Jacob was Bella's Soul Mate. Jacob was meant for Bella in this life. I was the one taking away her happiness. If I had only stayed in Alaska, then Bella would be happy right now.

Then Fin's words came back to haunt me, making me wince. _'Can you give her up to live her life... without you? Do you love her that much?' _If I couldn't stay away then, could I walk away now and let her have her happily-ever-after with Jacob, assuming we could save him?

Looking at the other spectrum, what if we couldn't save him? What would his death mean for Bella? How would it affect her?

Carlisle crossed the room in a blink of an eye and put his hand to my shoulder. _'Son?'_ He's eyes held the compassion and worry that I had become accustomed to over the last few months.

"He's in a lot of pain." I whispered to him far to quickly for Bella to hear. "The morphine only masks the pain. He's holding on, though, for Bella." I clenched my teeth as the pain became nearly overwhelming.

Carlisle trained his eyes on Jacob and his lips straightened into a thin line. _'I am at a loss as to what to do. If the morphine isn't workin-'_

"She is supposed to be Jacob's." The words felt like they were crushing my heart as they passed through my lips. My legs felt like they would give out under the strain of my crushing heart.

Carlisle's head snapped back to mine. I lifted my eyes to look into his. He was confused by my words. I was confused by my words, too. If it were true that she belonged with Jacob, why did it hurt so badly to admit it? Was it simply that the truth hurt? _'Edward, what do you mean?'_

"Someone came to me a few weeks ago." I swallowed unnecessarily, the ache of heartbreak churning up my throat in a writhing burn. "She showed me things. Things that..."

_'Edward, you're not making sense. A woman showed you things?' _Then understanding crept into Carlisle's face. _'Was she like Alice?'_

I nodded solemnly.

_'Son, you know that the future is unwritten. It changes with each decision we make.'_

"Carlisle, it was more than that." Logically, I knew that my heart was dead and was just a heavy weight within the cavity of my chest, but that logic did little to cease the ache I felt facing reality.

For the last couple of weeks I had convinced myself that this Lady Arianna was wrong. I tried to convince myself that she had some type of ulterior motive to try and get me to leave Bella. It was hard to convince myself of that now. Bella clung to Jacob in a way that she probably didn't even realize. I know she loves me, but she is drawn to him. _Like how I was drawn to Maria._

Another pang of guilt echoed through my heart at the thought of Maria. There was nothing that could be done, though. Even if she were my "soul mate," I couldn't make myself stop loving Bella. She was so much more to me than some type of infatuation. She had my heart and somehow made it beat, if only metaphorically.

_Maybe Maria could, too?_ The thought crept suddenly into my mind and I had to quickly push it away. I didn't want to think like that. I didn't want to think about Maria at all. She was nothing to me. _Liar. _She was just a girl who looked like Bella. Nothing more... nothing less. _Liar._ Again, I pushed all thoughts of Maria away from my conscious mind.

My mind then went to Alice. Did my beating heart have to be metaphorical? Against all the knowledge that we possessed, Alice's heart now beat. Becoming a vampire was supposed to be final. There was no going back once you were bitten. Clearly, that wasn't true. Alice had living blood flowing through her veins. She was alive. So if it were possible for her, was it a possibility for all of us? Could we too become human and move forward again?

"Edward." Carlisle's brows knitted. _'Perhaps you should speak to Bella about this.'_

I knew Carlisle was right. I needed to tell Bella everything. I needed to tell her about Maria and Lady Arianna. It wasn't like I was intentionally keeping her out. I just didn't want to make things more difficult for her. That was what I told myself, at least. In all honesty, I was also afraid of what Bella would do, once she knew what Jacob was to her.

_'Perhaps I should go and give you two privacy?'_

A moment of panic coiled within my gut and the stark possibility that I could lose Bella slapped me in the face. I wanted to believe that I could step away, if she wanted it so. However, I didn't want to willingly push Bella away. I had gone months going crazy without Bella, I couldn't do it so willingly again. I hadn't realized I had shook my head, it was so automatic. It wasn't until Carlisle's lips tilted downward that it dawned on me. What kind of man was I? _You're not a man. You're a monster._

"What's wrong?" Bella's words pitched in worry. Carlisle and I both looked at Bella. Had Bella heard our conversation? I suppose it was possible, she was after all Drake. Fin didn't seem to have any trouble keeping up. Then Carlisle recollected that Bella had asked what we could do for Jacob in the meantime. His mind flickered back to what we had been discussing. He still had no idea what could be done. He was right, this was unprecedented. The guilt gnawed at me yet again.

I raked my hand through my hair and turned away. I made this promise and somehow, I had to come through for Bella. I had to find a way.

"I apologize. He should rest and conserve his strength." That was the best suggestion that Carlisle could give. It was reasonable and in theory may help to sustain his strength for some time, but it wouldn't stop the deterioration that he was clearly suffering from. I had to do something. There had to be something that we weren't thinking of.

"Bella." My whole body tensed with Jacob's words.

Bella fell over herself trying to run to his side, taking his hand into hers.

_'It wasn't a dream. She's really back. She is here and safe!' _Through Jacob's mind, I could see the lines of worry etched all over Bella's face. The way she looked at him, it was like she only saw him. Perhaps it was just Jacob's point of view tainting the image, but I couldn't deny the possibility that perhaps she did only see Jacob at that moment.

My heart clenched in pain as the salty sweet smell of Bella's tears overwhelmed my senses. I wanted to turn and run to her. I wanted to take her into my arms and hold her.

Jacob's heart sped up as Bella gently touched his face as she moved his hair. The pain he was feeling had faded substantially. Although his body was very much aware of our presence, his mind was purely focused on Bella. It was as if only he and Bella were here alone.

_'God, I love her so much.' _Jacob's realization only served to further wedge the blade of guilt into my being. Not only that, but it made a very real desire burst forth within me. I wanted to turn and tear him to shreds. I wanted to keep him as far away from my Bella as possible, but I couldn't do that. I couldn't hurt Bella like that. Instead, I did the hardest thing I ever had to do. I walked away.

I hadn't meant for Carlisle to follow, but he was close on my heels. "I can't tell her, Carlisle. I love her." My heart felt like it was ripping apart. "I don't want to lose her..." I turned to face him, my whole being crumbling into itself. "But what kind of monster would I be not to tell her?" Conflicting was far too simple a word to describe the turmoil I found myself in. I knew the right thing to do was exactly as Carlisle had suggested. However, my self-preservation instincts forestalled the truth from coming out because of the dire consequences that could ensue. I could lose her.

"I know this is hard son and I don't know all the details, but I know she loves you, too." He put his hand to my shoulder and smiled reassuringly. "Once you reveal everyth-"

"I kissed Maria." I hadn't meant to reveal that to anyone, but it came out regardless. Perhaps I was on a truth purge with Carlisle, since I was too much of a coward to tell Bella.

"Wh-"

"It was an accid... I... There was a moment and then she kissed me." I was trying to justify it... trying to lay blame on Maria. That was how I was able to push it, her, aside for so long, but the truth of the matter was that I kissed Maria back. If it hadn't been for Bella's memory, I wasn't sure where that kiss would have led. It was passionate and consuming. I had lost myself in a way that I had never dreamed possible with Bella, which didn't make any sense to me. Maria was just as durable – maybe even more so – as Bella. I should have been cautious.

I groaned and tugged at my hair. What was I saying? I shouldn't have been cautious... it shouldn't have ever happened. I should have never let it get that far.

"What happened Edward?' Carlisle's words weren't accusing, just concerned.

What happened? I had let go. I had let myself go with instinct and kissed her back. "She... She may be my Soul Mate."

Carlisle's brows lifted substantially. "I am sorry Edward, but I have to admit, I am a little confused." He shook his head. He thought about the possibility of having two mates. That wasn't heard of. Some vampires went their whole existence never finding their one mate, much less two in a span of a couple of months.

"Maybe it was Maria's likeness to Bella?" Carlisle tried to surmise. "Perha-"

I shook my head. "I was drawn to her Carlisle. That first day, I felt it. I tried for weeks upon weeks to ignore her. I tried to. Despite my efforts, I constantly found myself walking to her instead of away." I looked down with guilt. "I found myself wanting to be around her. I wanted to know more about her." I laughed humorlessly. "She can block me."

Carlisle nodded absently. "She is Bella's sister, surely an inherited trait." His mind continued to try and make sense of what I was telling him. I hoped to God that he could figure it out, because I couldn't. I couldn't understand that if I was meant to be with Maria and Bella was meant for Jacob… then why was I so afraid to lose Bella? Why did my heart break a million times over at the possibility of losing her? Why did my heart beat so emphatically for her?

"Lady Arianna, the one who showed me things, told me, in so many words, why I am... was so drawn to Maria. She told me that Maria is the one that was meant for me in this life, just as Jacob was meant for Bella." A throb of pain reverberated through my body again. My entire being was at war with itself; it wanted Bella, but I couldn't stop thinking about Maria.

Carlisle's mind began to question Lady Arianna's purposes for sharing this information. He too wondered if it were even true. "I know there is truth to it." I confirmed for him. "I..." I clenched my teeth as the sound of a car echoed through the air as it turned down Bella's street. Then the familiar scent of Jasper and Fin filled the air. There was a subtle hint that I would have to memorize as Alice's now. It was still very much Alice's scent, but it was heavily diluted with the smell of flowing blood, somehow making it seem completely different.

I chuckled humorlessly as I could already hear Alice's mind reprimanding me. Apparently, too much time had passed and Alice became too anxious. Was it possible that she was far more stubborn and impatient as a human than as a vampire? I suppose it would make sense. As a human, time did not go on eternally. It was finite.

Suddenly, Jasper was standing next to me. "You know how she is," he reasoned.

I smiled halfheartedly. "Even as a human, she is still a force to be reckoned with," I agreed. I could see in Jasper's mind that he wished he could be with Alice, but he didn't want to risk being in the close quarters of a car with her very much human. He was afraid he would slip and hurt Alice or even worse, kill her.

I hadn't been as cautious as I should have been with Bella. If I had been, she would have never been taken away from us. For that reason, we were all in the mess we found ourselves in now with a very old vampire lurking the woods of Forks. A vampire who had a normally exclusive diet of Drake, which Bella happened to be, in part.

When I had smelled Bella's blood untainted by flesh, I had completely lost myself to the monster I tried to bury. I cringed at the memory of Carlisle drawing Bella's blood shortly after she returned from Faery. The desire to sink my teeth into her had been purely instinctual and had nearly lost me the woman I love. If I had trouble resisting her, what would McAlister do? Fin was under the impression that McAlister would stop at nothing to have Bella. The thought of him trying to get his hands on Bella made me furious.

"Edward?" Jasper cocked a brow. "You're all over the place." A sense of calm and peace began to push the fury away. It seemed to ebb at the pain, but even Jasper's gift didn't pull it away completely.

The car barely came to a stop before Alice had the door pushed open and nearly slipped on the ice that had accumulated on the road's pavement. Before any of us could run to her to help her, Fin had managed to get out of the car and catch her. He laughed. "Don't forget that you don't have the same poise that you once had."

Alice turned her head to Fin and narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, I got it." She smiled despite the agitation she felt at not having all the capabilities she had had as a vampire. The more prominent aspect she missed right now was being impervious to the cold. She shivered and then turned her attention to us. "I know you wanted to get her out of the house and for me to wait, but I didn't realize you were going to take ALL day." She put her gloved hand on her hip and glared at me.

It was strange that even as a human, she could still pierce you with her eyes. _'I really want to see her.' _Her mind pleaded with me.

"Alice, it may not be-"

"Edward..." She crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm not taking 'no' as an answer."

Carlisle stepped forward. "Why don't I let Bella know that you are here." He turned back to me, concern still etched in the shapes of his brows. Then he turned and was gone.

Alice moved more cautiously and came to a stop a few inches from me. "What was that about?" She eyed me suspiciously.

I opened my mouth to tell her it was nothing, but then stopped. Alice had been with us long enough to know our unguarded looks. I knew she had recognized the concern Carlisle exhibited for all to see. Instead I just shook my head and turned to Fin. I extended my hand as he took it. "Good to see you again Fin. I was worried I wouldn't." I knew Fin had meant his promise to Niamh. He had planned on staying with her in Faery despite the fact that he hated it and thought it was a trap to kill him.

Fin's face fell drastically. He stared at our hands as his lips turned down in a grimace as if he read my thoughts. "Certain things have come to light that need to be dealt with." He turned his eyes to Jasper, who nodded in turn. I raised my brows in question. "Trouble is coming to our doorstep and we need to prepare."

I knitted my brow and released Fin's hand. "Are you talking about McAlister?"

Fin's brows shot up. "The Fa Kruda is still here?" His heart rate sped up as his eyes scanned the tree lines.

I nodded solemnly and then realized that he must not have been referring to McAlister. What trouble was coming? Before I had a chance to answer him or ask what the trouble was, the front door opened. Alice bounded forward, nearly slipping again, but caught herself as she ran into the house. I chuckled as I started to follow behind, but then Jasper stopped me. Fin looked to Jasper and then nodded before turning to go in the house.

I looked to Jasper. "Edward, there is a war coming."

A war? "What are you talking about?" Unbidden, Alice's visions came to mind. She had seen images that were unclear, but was centered around death.

Jasper sighed. "The seer, the one who helped to save Alice, she showed us the future that awaited us in a few months' time. The war that is raging in Faery will spill over to earth... to Forks."

A sudden heavy weight fell in the pit of my stomach. The importance of Jasper clarifying that the war was coming to Forks was not lost on me. If it was coming specifically for Forks, that meant there was something here that would draw it. My mind instantly snapped to Bella.

"We need to get together an army." Jasper continued, unfazed by my silence. _'We need the Volturi.'_

"What?!" I nearly roared. What was Jasper thinking? The damage that the Volturi could unleash was daunting, especially when that damage could be related to Bella. There was also the nagging memory that the Volturi were heavily involved in Alice's visions, too.

Jasper held up his hands in a gesture to tell me to give him a moment to explain. I ran my hand through my hair and clenched my teeth as I waited. "I don't like the idea of them being anywhere nearby either, especially with Alice being human, but we need the 'expertise' they have to offer." Jasper looked to the house. "We need all the help we can get. That means enlisting everyone that we can."

I shook my head. "Jasper, they can't be trusted. You know as well as I do that if they get one whiff of Bella, it is over for her. At best, they would try to change her... at worst they would..." I couldn't finish, but I could tell by the expression that Jasper held, he understood.

"If they don't come, she has a higher probability of perishing in the war."

"Jasper..."

"I plan on bringing this up to everyone later, but Alice thought it more prudent for me to bring it up to you first."

That sneaking suspicion came crashing back. "Why?"

"Bella." He said simply, but it was crushing and confirmed the fear that had welled up in me. Trouble was coming and it was making a b-line straight to Bella.


	5. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Thank you to all of you who have read thus far. I hope you are enjoying! I wanted to also thank Andrewsamy for being such an awesome Beta! **

**Chapter IV**

**(Edward's Point of View)**

An overwhelming sense of calm bombarded me from the crushing fear. I turned a grateful eye to Jasper. He nodded. "Bella?"

Again Jasper nodded. "The Drakes found out somehow that Bella's mother is a Sylph." Jasper's thoughts told me that he still thought it was insane that elementals existed and we hadn't a clue about it. He also thought that it made sense now why some humans smelled far more intoxicating than others. "They want to use her. Probably to turn the tide of the war. I assume that they are not doing well."

"You are sure?" I ran my hand through my hair and pulled at their ends.

"Well, Lady Arianna didn't really tell us why the war was coming here, she just-"

Jasper's words drawled on, but I didn't hear them anymore. Lady Arianna. They had seen her. Had she told them what she had told me? Did Jasper know about Jacob and Maria? Who exactly was this Lady Arianna in the grand scheme of all of this?

A snarl echoed in my mind just as the smell hit me. I turned my attention just as Jasper did, to the surrounding forest making out two wolves.

_'What is that smell?' _Nearly simultaneously, Jasper's thoughts echoed that of a sandy wolf with black tipped ears. The wolf sniffed the air with his ears pushed forward in interest.

_ 'Why is Jake at the Chief's old house?' _A voice asked suspiciously.

_'Paul, not now.' _The second wolf, Jared, paced the line of trees just inside the forest.

_'There's at least three leeches, counting the doc,' _the sandy wolf turned his head expectantly to the brown wolf that continued to pace.

_'Cullens.' _Both Paul and Jared's thoughts bombarded my mind at once. Their tone was almost defensive. It would seem that Carlisle had somehow made an impression on these two.

_'Okay... I smell Jacob, a human and something else.' _The sandy wolf turned his head back to the house and spied through the open door just as Alice stepped away from Bella and Fin stepped to the door.

_'What the hell?' _Paul's voice echoed with shock._ 'Bella's back?'_

_ 'Who is Bella?' _A new voice asked disinterested. I could see trees flying by through the mind and it was very confusing and yet fascinating how the pack minds were all linked together.

_'Jacob's Bella?' _Another new voice.

_'I am going to shift. Quil, Paul, continue following the leech. Jesse, you stay put, okay?'_

_ 'Sure thing, bro.' _The sandy colored wolf nodded his head as Jared stepped behind a cluster of trees. The sound of bones cracking and shifting filled the air. Then a moment later, Jared walked stiffly out of the forest hoping that Jacob was okay. _'What's the big deal about this Bella chick and why does she smell different?' _The sandy wolf inquired.

_ 'I can't believe he didn't say anything!' _Paul fumed.

_'This is the same Bella that Jacob imprinted on?'_

_ 'We don't know that he imprinted. He hadn't seen her since he started shifting... well, not until today.' _Paul explained with a hint of hostility in his thoughts. _'I can't believe Jared kept this from us. How can he be such a moron!'_

_ 'Dude, that's my brother you're talking about!' _Jesse complained.

_'Yeah and your brother is a dumbass!' _Paul snarled.

Jared came to a stop several yards away from where Jasper and I stood, pulling my attention from the pack's mind. He wondered exactly which of the Cullens we were and wondered how Jacob's reception here was. He hadn't realized that Jacob had "escaped" nor knew how he came to find out Bella was back.

"Good evening Jared. This is Jasper and I am Edward." I said, introducing ourselves.

Jared's eyes widened minutely as he nodded his head stiffly. "I came to get Jacob."

Jasper looked at Jared and then me quizzically. He had noticed the bad smell, but hadn't really thought about a wolf being here. He was suddenly uneasy about Alice being in the house with the wolf. He rushed forward, leaving me alone in the yard with Jared.

No one had informed him of the wolves or their conditions. Then again, why would anyone. I turned my mind back towards the house in time to hear Jasper try to defend Fin. I couldn't say I was surprised that Bella wasn't coping well with Fin. This was part of the struggles she was trying to deal with while simultaneously dealing with the death of the man who served as her father her entire life.

I wanted to run in there and make everyone leave. I wanted Jared to take Jacob far away and never let him anywhere near Bella. I then wanted to wrap Bella in my arms and try and make all the pain go away. But I couldn't. I had been trying for weeks now and she hadn't been any better than the day everything went wrong. It wasn't until _he _was here that she had shown any semblance of life in her face.

I suddenly caught a flicker of Jacob's dream, so oblivious of the turmoil that surrounded him. _Jacob and Bella were sitting on a twisted piece of driftwood on the beach. He looked at her with only love and adoration as she looked out over the water. She had been in the middle of saying something, but then stopped and turned to look at Jacob, catching him in his fascination of her. Jacob's cheeks flushed and he turned his eyes downward and rubbed a hand across the back of his neck._

_ 'Sorry, I-'_

_ His words caught in his throat when Bella reached her hand out timidly and caressed his cheek. His eyes met hers and it was as if that simple motion began to draw them together like magnets._

I quickly tried to push away Jacob's fantasies. They made the all-consuming guilt more unbearable and the flames of jealousy burn even hotter.

Suddenly, an overwhelming smell arose through the air. I recognized Bella's scent when her blood began to race. It was alluring and intoxicating. Jasper's mind flashed for an instant of the hunt, but upon seeing Alice, he wrestled with the need to restrain the monster.

_'Woah... That's a good smell!' _Jesse sniffed the air and took a couple of steps out of the tree line. Jared shot him a look. "Jesse!"

The sandy wolf turned his head sharply to meet Jared's eyes and then lowered his head sheepishly before taking a few steps back into the cover of the forest.

I began to move toward the house, but froze.

'_There he is! Quil... to the left! Casey, flank Quil's right. Michael, get the other side! Joshua and Joseph, you're with me!'_

I could see McAlister, hunched over something. His face turned sharply towards me. His eyes narrowed and then he looked down at whatever he was hunched over. In the next instant, he was running.

_'Oh hell no! We aren't going to let him get away again!'_

_ 'Casey, check on the man down. Michael, keep up with us!'_

A groan, I supposed came from Casey, echoed in my head. _'Quil! I'm older than Joshua and Joseph! I should get to-'_

_ 'Stop being a douche! You know they are both better fighters than you!'_

_ 'What would you know Mike?!'_

_ 'I know I whoop your as-'_

_ 'Shut up both of you! Jesse! Get Jared back! Jacob can wait. We need to end this tonight!' _That was Quil's voice. _'Don't howl though. We don't need Jacob trying to be a hero.'_

"They found McAlister. They are chasing him and want you to join. There may be a casualty." I looked to Jared, whose eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head.

_'What the heck?!' _Jesse jerked his head in my direction. _'How did he know?'_

_ 'Ehh... There is a lot of blood here' _Casey sniffed around the body. _'I don't know what I am supposed to do. I ain't no doctor here.' _He nudged the body, pushing it over.

"David!" A cascading of guilt and pain for Bella crashed into my heart. This was going to devastate her.

_'Oh crap... He's still alive!'_

_ 'Was he bitten?' _Paul demanded.

_ 'I don't know. I can't tell, there's too much blood all over the place.' _Casey whimpered.

_ 'We'll bring the doctor with us.' _Jared reconnected with the pack's mind. I hadn't even noticed he left, I was too focused on the scene unfolding in my mind.

"Jared, tell Casey to keep him warm until we get there. With that much blood loss, he will go into hypothermia."

Jared narrowed his eyes, but relayed the message to Casey unnecessarily, since he had already heard it from my own mouth.

"Edward, what's wrong?" Alice's voice broke through the pack's mind.

I turned to her, to see Jasper, Fin and Carlisle with her. "Carlisle, David is hurt in the forest. He's unconscious and lost a lot of blood. McAlister may have bitten him. Jared and Jesse are going to lead us."

"McAlister? Why is he here, and who is David?" Alice took several steps forward, but was stopped when Jasper grabbed her arm. He suddenly looked abashed when she turned her head to look at him. He quickly dropped his arm and moved several steps away from Alice.

Alice sighed, thinking Jasper was being silly. She had no doubt that Jasper wouldn't hurt her. I wasn't sure if she was underestimating the monster that lay within all of us, or overestimating their connection.

"David is the one who brought Bella back from Faery." I turned to look at Jasper. "He's an empath that has been trying to make Charlie's death easier for Bella." This was only further acknowledgment that I alone was not enough to help Bella. I was a band-aid and nothing more.

A low yelp came from the forest as Jared was trying to hurry us along. I dipped back into the pack's mind long enough to see that they were closing in on McAlister.

"We can go over all of this shortly, we need to get to him before he loses too much blood." Carlisle moved to the tree line.

I turned back towards Alice, Jasper and Fin. "McAlister is running in the opposite direction." I hesitated before going and looked to Alice. A thought crossed my mind suddenly. Was Alice still able to get visions? If she couldn't, what would that mean for our family and our lives?

"I'll keep them safe," Jasper vowed. I nodded and looked to Fin.

He looked to the house and then back to me. "You needn't even ask. She is my safu." He again looked to the house as an irrevocable sadness crept into his eyes. I didn't have time to question it. Instead I took off after Carlisle and the wolves. Jasper would fight to keep Bella safe from McAlister. Fin would keep Bella safe from Jasper, if... I didn't want to think of my brother in that way, but it was a possibility. A very real possibility at that.

As Bella's scent grew more distant a sudden sense of déjà vu nearly knocked me to my knees. It was nine months ago that I had left Bella with Jasper and Alice to keep her safe. I went off with Carlisle with a psychopath on the loose. And now it was happening again, as a different psychopath threatened her life.

I had lost her then.

No. I couldn't think like that. This wasn't like last time. Even if it were, James hadn't gotten to Bella. _He'd gotten to Maria. _Then again, Bella hadn't been anywhere near McAlister.

With the exception of tonight and when her blood was drawn, her scent was fairly subdued. Take that into account and the fact that McAlister had been otherwise distracted with Jacob, Bella went under the radar. I wasn't sure how long that would last though, with Jacob leading him straight to Bella.

The overpowering smell of blood saturated the air as we drew near, effectively pulling me out of my own thoughts. Although David's blood didn't call me like Bella's did, it still caused a burning in my throat. It was as if I had not just satiated my thirst this morning.

"Edward, are you okay?" Carlisle turned his concern toward me. "Is the blood getting to you?"

I shook my head. I could handle this. It would seem that Drake blood was far more potent than Dryad blood.

_ McAlister looked back to see the wolves closing in behind him. His lips curled up in a smile._

Something wasn't right. He was toying with them, but why? That didn't seem like the McAlister I met in Ireland. What were we missing?

We came up to a black mound. The wolf quickly lifted his head and turned toward us. He yelped and jumped up. He had been wrapped around David's broken body.

_'Jesse, you stay here with the doctor, Casey and I are going to catch up with the others.'_

_ 'Aw man!' _Jesse lowered his black tipped ears. _'Why can't I help with the leech?'_

Jared growled. _'Because I told you to stay here!'_

"Be cautious. Something isn't right about how he is acting." I knelt down to David with Carlisle as he began to assess the situation.

Jared and Casey took off in a shower of mud and damp leaves.

Carlisle knelt next to David, his knees sinking into the damp earth. He felt his pulse as he listened to his heartbeat. It was faint and sputtered, but it was still beating, for now at least. Carlisle's lips tilted into a frown. "We need to get him to the hos-" Carlisle thought about the fact that David wasn't exactly human, therefore he wasn't sure if the hospital was a good idea. "We will need to get him to our house. He needs fluids... blood." Carlisle continued to assess David's condition, to make sure we could move him without causing more damage. "His left leg feels fractured in two places." His hand trailed delicately over David's ribs. His eyes creased with worry. "There are several broken ribs on his left side." He put his ear to his chest. "He may have a punctured lung."

I concentrated my ears to listen for the tale-tell sound of hissing, as if air were being let out of a balloon. It was faint, but it was there.

"His left arm is crushed. I don't think we will be able to save it." Carlisle concluded. He looked to Jesse and then to me. "We need to move him quickly, but carefully." Carlisle put his fingers onto David's skull, his face again creasing with worry. "He has several contusions on his skull." Carlisle was worried about the amount of swelling on his head. There was the distinct possibility that if the outside of his skull had sustained such damage, there very well could be swelling on the inside, which could be fatal if not dealt with quickly. The thought passed through Carlisle's mind that David may not survive and it made me wince with pain.

I had lived with David for a month or so. He was the only mind I had privy to besides my own. He was a decent fellow. He mourned his sister's loss, but had formed some type of connection with Bella. It wasn't attraction or anything remotely romantic, but there was something that propelled him to remain at Bella's side. It was something that he himself didn't even understand, but he had unwavering faith in his intuition. From my vantage point, the protectiveness he had for her was like an older brother.

Another wince of pain bombarded me when I thought about Bella. How would she take this news? She was fighting to save Jacob. Would she try to take blame for David?

"Carlisle." My attention snapped back to here and now. I didn't need to say anything more to Carlisle, because he too heard the distinction in David's heartbeat. David's heart rate was slowing. If we didn't do something now, he would die before we made it to the house.

Why did everything seem to pile up at once? Charlie's death, Jacob, McAlister, Fin, Da— My mind stopped momentarily. Fin. He could heal himself, did that work on others, too? Could he heal David? Why hadn't I thought about Fin when it came to Jacob? Maybe he could heal Jacob, too, and then Bella could have some semblance of happiness back.

I shook my head at my own idiocy, drawing both Carlisle and Jesse's attention. I should have thought of him sooner.

'_I'm surprised neither of them are going ape crazy with all this blood around. Then again, I guess the doc does work around it all the time.' _Jesse turned a quizzical eye to me. He thought about how I seemed to know what was going on and thought it was suspicious. I pushed his thoughts to the back of my mind and turned my attention to Carlisle.

"We need Fin."

Carlisle furrowed his brow in confusion. "What can Fin do?"

I furrowed my brows, too. "I'm not sure he can do anything, but it's the best option we have right now. We won't make it back to the house or the hospital before his heart gives out."

Carlisle's thoughts agreed with me, but he did think of the other possibility of changing him, but then pushed the thought away. _'Go quickly!'_

I turned and ran through the woods as fast as my legs would carry me. My mind revolving around the hope that Fin could do something, anything.


End file.
